The Team
Who We Are
Cierra Rohde
Owner/Director
Contemporary, Lyrical, Musical Theatre, Tap, Jazz, Technique and Progressive Ballet Technique
Cierra is a happy, positive and dedicated artist and teacher with a passion for dance that drives her motivation and persistence towards the constant improvement of her craft. She is always happy to jump into a new process and wishes to share her love of dance and contribute innovative ideas to this industry. She loves teaching children and passing on the knowledge she has, and continues to learn about, to our future generation of dancers. She can effectively manage a class and accomplish goals while still ensuring the dancers’ time in the studio is enjoyable. Her competitive choreography has won multiple awards, including but not limited to choreography awards and overall placements.
Cierra has been dancing since the age of two. Some of her accomplishments include dancing at the 2013 World Dance Championships in Warsaw, Poland for Team Canada, dancing in the 2010 Paralympic opening ceremonies and dancing in various performances in Vancouver and Toronto. She trained for two years with Lamondance and another two years with Conteur Dance Academy in Toronto. She has trained with many amazing artists from Vancouver and Toronto, including Heather Dotto, Joshua Beamish, Lara Barclay, Eryn Waltman and Ryan Lee. Cierra looks forward to stretching creative boundaries with new dancers.
James Furnell
Ballet, Jazz and Lyrical
James’ professional training includes Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, Contemporary, Hip Hop/Commercial, Musical Theatre, Singing and Acting at the world renowned Bird College - Conservatoire for dance and musical theatre in London, England. At Bird he received a 1st Class (Hons) degree in Professional Dance and Musical Theatre. During his training he performed in 9 to 5, Sister Act and 1984 and has performed on live television as a backing dancer and soloist for different artists and programs. James moved to Vancouver in 2019 and found his love for teaching dance. James is excited to share his passion for dancing and performing with our students.
Emilie James-Lessard
Preschool
Emilie has been dancing since she was four years old. She trained technically and competitively in many different styles, including Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary and Lyrical. After completing her RAD and AIDT, she went on to continue dancing recreationally and now performs with the Sea to Sky Dance Collective, which is a local non-profit group of dancers who raise funds from performances to benefit various charities. After high school, Emilie decided to become an early childhood educator to pursue a career working with preschool aged children. She has been teaching preschool in the Sea to Sky corridor since 2017. She believes in providing a safe and positive environment for every child and does so with her natural compassion, kindness and patience. Her passion is not only in working with children but in helping each child to discover their own strengths and encouraging them to thrive in their own unique way. Her goal is to bring that passion into the studio at Dance Directions. She is excited to share her love for dance with this community.
Emily Kociolek
Preschool
Emily, who is originally from Australia has been living in the Sea to Sky region for 6 years. Her day-to-day life has seen her start her own business to contract herself as a Logistics and Operations Manager for major festivals such as Canada's Grey Cup, Crankworx, Granfondo & the Vancouver Christmas Markets. She has always loved events and the entertainment industry. She began her dance training in Brisbane, Australia when she was 6-years old growing into assistant teaching positions during her teenage years at her Studio. She has trained in Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Contemporary, Lyrical, Burlesque and Musical Theatre. Although she is very honest that singing is not her strong suit, it doesn't stop her putting on a show as she always feels, "It only takes one voice to get the whole crowd singing".
Kenneth Paradilla
Hip Hop
Kenneth started dancing at the age of 16 and soon realized his passion for dance.
Kenneth went on to teach choreography across Canada- Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary, etc. Most recently he has had the pleasure of expanding his teaching resources through online class platforms where he has held digital classes in Russia, France, Switzerland, Costa Rica and got invited to attend a dance convention called Shake It which is based from Dominican Republic. In his professional dancing career, Kenneth has competed and placed in many competitions locally & internationally. He has also worked with Lululemon, Vice Magazine, and was a feature performer in “This is Yoga Campaign”. Kenneth currently resides in Vancouver, training and working as an independent artist. Kenneth’s dance style focuses on the intention of movement and varying energy within the move by playing with instrumentals and lyricism.
Emily Sherwood
Acro
Born and raised on the Sunshine Coast, Emily Sherwood is a sweet, fun loving teacher who has been performing a multitude of arts throughout her entire life.
On and off stage, Emily is an emotive storyteller, who loves to install and evoke feeling throughout her work. The magic of gifting dance to her students is Emily's favourite part of instructing, along with the continued study of her craft in her personal life as well.
Emily has extensive hours studying in Hip Hop, Contemporary, Acrobatic and Jazz dance styles, and has recently started training in Tap. She competed in all styles throughout her teen years, and continues to take as many classes as she can.
While not on stage, Emily enjoys tending to her indoor and outdoor jungles, going for walks in the forest, and drinking tea.
